While it has been so very very hot in San Jose, California, this week, we
have been working on the caboose preparations in the early morning and
after sunset. John installed a temporary light fixture at the end of
what will be the platform/deck so that he can work after dark.
The electrical, gas, and water lines are now all tidy with switches,
outlets, connectors, and spigots as appropriate. Watering the yard
is much easier with new spigots in all the locations where I have wanted
them for years. The new brick walkways are working well – especially the
one which goes around the ends of the rails so I can use my wheelbarrow
to move rocks and dirt around.
I moved some of the larger stones to make a rock garden next to the concrete
pad of the spa. I planted two Portulacaria afra (Elephant Plants) and a
Succulent Sempervivum (I don’t know its common name) among the rocks.
I put two larger flatter boulders on top of base rocks to make seats and
made sure there were smooth boulders on the bottom layer to feel good
against bare feet. I think this will grow into a comfortable informal
bench as well as a planting area. I am deciding how to plant the rest
of the space. I may install my garden railway there with little mountains
and small-dimensioned plants to make it look to scale.
The “2nd Annual San Jose Grand
Prix” is downtown this weekend and they have rented all the big fork
lifts so we have to wait for that to end before we can move the caboose
wheels.
KatysBlog 
Katy, my wife, Linda, and I are considering removing our pool. I Googled that phrase and up poppoed your blog – ain’t technology grand?!
Can you tell me 1) who your contractor was and 2) are you satisfied with their work so far? Did you speak with an appraiser and/ or realtor before you filled in the pool regarding your property values?
What else can you tell me about having a pool removed?
Hope it’s all working out better than expected and thanks in advance for your time and trouble,
Pat Stubbs
San Jose, CA
Hi Pat and Linda
Thanks for your questions. I recommend our soils engineering company – Upp Technology of San Jose – but not the contractor, because we had so many problems with them. You may not need a soils engineer if you are not building on top of the new fill.
We did speak with a realtor (Chuck Harmon of Prime Residential Investments, Campbell) before having the work done. Chuck sold us our home originally and we have recommended him to all of our friends (who have also been happy with his work). We already knew that often a pool detracts from house value because of the work and cost to maintain it. With regard to the backyard caboose, Chuck said that so long as we did a good job of installation and restoration, it would add to the value of the house. As with any construction project, plan for pool removal to take much longer than expected. We were hit with months of rain of almost act-of-God volumes.
Katy